大象传媒

It started off in Jersey when the war broke out. I heard it over the wireless, which was weird as I wasn't in England. The next day I sailed home to London. The following day I was told to be at Woodgreen railway station and a train full of expectant mothers and babies stopped and picked me up. I was then put down at Hemmington level crossing where I was met by one of the teachers. I was billeted with the local baker and was allowed to see how he made the bread.

This was only a short stay as the local school was too small to accomodate us. We moved to Ramsey where we went to the abbey school. This time I was billeted with the fish and chip shop. They were a lovely family.

Three months later my parents and I moved back to Jersey, thinking to stay for the duration of war. However my mother suffered from asthma and we returned home to Crouch End. During an air raid when we slept on the hall floor through the glass door we saw a bright light and dared to go outside to see what it was. We went up the hill to see what it was. We saw what we later found out to be London docks burning fiercely. The whole horizon was a line of fire, going up into the sky, to quite a height.

My father was sent to Farmborough aircraft factory (incidently he also served there in the First World War)We lived at Cove and going outside the front door one day, which was opposite a railway line. I saw a German airplane flying along the long firing its tracer bullets.

We returned to London and I continued my education at my old school with two other school pupils and various teachers from all three schools. We took Matric exams and general schools. I failed to qualify for a teacher training but managed to obtain a post in the Midland bank.

After the war the government made it possible for all those who had been unable to qualify for training as teachers to apply for training then. I was sent to St Peter's college Peterborough, where I qualified. Peterborough had not changed since my evacuation there. I have stayed in this area ever since.

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